Figure 8.20 Hydrogen fuel cellPros
■ The waste product is pure water.
■ Ordinary water (either ocean water or freshwater) can be used to obtain
hydrogen.
■ Does not destroy wildlife habitats and has minimal environmental impact.
■ The energy to produce hydrogen could come from fusion reactors or other
less-polluting sources.
■ Hydrogen is easily transported through pipelines.
■ Hydrogen can be stored in compounds to make it safe to handle.
Hydrogen is explosive, but so are methane, propane, butane, and gasoline.Cons
■ Energy is required to produce the hydrogen from either water or methane.
■ Changing from a current fossil fuel-based system to a hydrogen-based
system would be very expensive.
■ Hydrogen gas is explosive.
■ As of now, it is difficult to store hydrogen gas for automobiles.